Question

What are non-essential amino acids ?

Hint:

These are the amino acids the body can make by itself, so they need not be taken in the diet. Glycine and alanine are examples.

Answer 1

Step 1: Recall the two groups of amino acids:
Proteins are made of about twenty amino acids.
The human body can make some of them on its own.
It cannot make the others, so these must come from food.

Step 2: Define non-essential amino acids:
Non-essential amino acids are the amino acids that the body can synthesise by itself.
We do not have to take them in the diet.
The body makes them from other compounds in the cell.

Step 3: Give examples:
Glycine, alanine, glutamic acid, aspartic acid and serine are non-essential amino acids.
In contrast, valine, leucine and lysine are essential and must come from the diet.

Final Answer:
Non-essential amino acids are those that the body can make itself, so they need not be supplied through food. Examples are glycine and alanine. \[ \boxed{\text{Amino acids synthesised in the body, e.g. glycine, alanine}} \]